Today’s meal prep video features delicious and healthy vegan recipes that are also high in protein and low calorie-dense. Check out the video for visuals and don’t forget to scroll down for the written recipes!
There’s a saying that June is the new January — well, every start of the month is usually a chance to realign ourselves with our goals. Hence, I decided to make another meal prep video for those who need help coming up with healthy & high-protein vegan recipes to make!
I generally don’t meal prep too much anymore since I make food for a LIVING! As a result, I’m always drowning in tons of leftovers (not a bad problem to have). Since I’m on a mission to eat healthier and become more fit, I decided to make some healthy & low-calorie meals for myself. Partly for my benefit, but I also wanted to share what I made to give you some ideas on what recipes you can make if you are also on the same page as I am.
If you haven’t meal prepped in your life, here are the benefits on why you should try it out:
- It saves you time
- It saves you money
- It helps you stick to your health and fitness goals
- It helps you stick to a plant-based diet!
The recipes I shared are not only delicious and healthy but are also filling since I intentionally selected ingredients that are high in protein content. They are also low calorie-dense but high in volume, which makes them ideal if you have some fitness goals in mind and if you’re trying to keep your calorie intake in check.
NOTE that you do not have to stick to calorie counting if you’re not comfortable with it; I just personally do it myself because I have specific fitness goals that I want to achieve).
Meal prepping saved me so much time, money, and energy especially when I was living in London and working in an office 9-5. It was seriously a game-changer for me so I hope you guys try it to also achieve whatever goals you want to achieve!
Don’t forget to check out the video above to see these beautiful high protein vegan meal prep recipes live and to scroll down below if you want to get to the written recipes~
Breakfast – Tofu & Lentil Scramble with Roasted Sweet Potatoes
The veggies in this recipe actually helped to make this dish a bigger, more voluminous meal that’s also very filling and satisfying! The tofu also helps with the satiation factor, while the roasted sweet potatoes can make a great snack and side dish to any meal!
Ingredients:
Sweet potatoes:
- 1 tbsp of avocado oil
- 2 large sweet potatoes, cubed
- Salt to taste
Tofu & Lentil Scramble:
- 1 zucchini, diced
- 1 bell pepper, diced
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 2-3 roma tomatoes, chopped
- 1/2 cup dry red split lentils + 1 cup of boiled water
- 350g tofu (preferably firm or extra firm)
- 3-4 tbsp Scrambled Tofu Seasoning (more if needed)
- 1/2 tbsp paprika (optional)
- salt & pepper to taste
- Small amount of oil
Instructions:
Step 1 – Roast the sweet potatoes
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Peel sweet potatoes and cut them up into cubes.
- Add into a large mixing bowl and add oil. Mix well.
- Transfer sweet potato cubes into a lined baking sheet, season with salt, and bake for around 25-30 minutes or so or until you can easily stick a fork in.
Step 2 – Prepare the tofu & lentil scramble
- Soak red split lentils in hot water and set aside.
- Chop up the veggies.
- In a large wok, heat a small amount of oil and sauté minced garlic.
- Add the chopped vegetables and sauté for a few minutes.
- Add lentils (drained) and crumbled up tofu. Mix.
- Throw in the scrambled tofu seasoning. Mix well and feel free to add in some paprika, salt, and pepper to taste.
- Store in a tightly sealed container and enjoy throughout the week! You can eat the scrambled tofu with a side of the sweet potatoes, with toast, in a breakfast burrito, etc. Feel free to serve with hot sauce, salsa, ketchup or whatever floats your boat.
Lunch – Quinoa & Black Bean Salad
The beauty of making a quinoa salad is that it is very easy to switch up how you enjoy it. I’m obsessed with this salad – it’s actually super tasty, fresh, simple and versatile. I love enjoying this with avocado, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, or artichokes. Feel free to add in other fixings like guacamole, salsa, hummus, etc.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of dry quinoa
- 2 cups of water
- 1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 large red bell pepper, diced
- 2 mini cucumbers, cut into small pieces
- 1 cup of mini tomatoes, cut in half
- Large handful of chopped cilantro or parsley
- 2/3 cup of canned corn
- 1 lemon, juiced
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Optional add-ins: avocado, olives, artichoke hearts, hearts of palm, pickled jalapenos, etc.
- Optional toppings: hummus, salsa, guacamole, hot sauce, etc…
Instructions:
- Cook quinoa by adding 1 cup into a pot with 2 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Cover and turn the heat down to low. Let it simmer for around 15-20 minutes or until the water is fully absorbed.
- Chop cucumbers, tomatoes, and bell peppers. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add in the cooked quinoa (make sure it has cooled down a bit), chopped veggies, black beans, parsley, and corn. Mix well.
- Pour in some lemon juice, salt and pepper, and mix well.
- Transfer into food containers before storing in the fridge. Enjoy throughout the week and switch things up by adding in optional add-ins and toppings as listed in the ingredients list.
Dinner – Deconstructed Salad Roll Bowl
For dinner, I made this recipe that I like to think is similar to these fresh spring rolls but a deconstructed version (making this a lot easier to make!). This is the simplest recipe of the three and all you have to do is to mix everything together and pour in the sauce before eating it. Yum!
Ingredients (4 servings):
- 3 carrots, peeled & julienned
- 2 cups shredded cabbage
- 1 zucchini, julienned
- 4 servings of rice noodles
- 1 can chickpeas, drained & rinsed
- 8 pieces of tempeh (I used pre-flavoured “maple & bacon flavour” tempeh)
For the 5 ingredient peanut dressing:
- 2 tbsp PB2 or peanut butter
- 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 4 tbsp of water to thin out
Instructions:
- Chop up cabbage and cut up zucchini and carrots julienne-style.
- Cook up rice noodles according to package instructions.
- Add zucchini noodles to the rice noodles to cook them (if you like them cooked, otherwise you can serve fresh). When rice noodles are just about done cooking, drain and thoroughly rinse with cold water. Set aside.
- On a heated pan, spray on a little bit of oil and cook up some tempeh.
- While the tempeh is cooking, make the sauce by mixing together the sauce ingredients in a small mixing bowl. Mix well until the consistency is smooth.
- Assemble the meal by dividing the ingredients into four servings and placing them in reusable food containers. Add in some chickpeas the cut-up cooked tempeh on the side.
- Feel free to pour the sauce on top of each or keep the sauce on the side until you are ready to eat.